a. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to a device that can facilitate the integration of a water catching, channelling, and expelling feature into a joist structure so as to render resultant structure a water-proof roof over area below.
b. Description of prior art
Wooden decks, such as those that are typically attached to a house or other such structure, are generally comprised of flooring planks arranged in a side-by-side manner and fastened to a supporting joist structure which is in turn supported by a post-beam structure or a wall. (Such decks may or may not include attached safety barriers, but such barriers are not pertinent to the problem being addressed.) A typical non-roofed weather-exposed wooden deck does not function as a water-proof roof since water can seep through the cracks between the flooring planks and subsequently fall onto and through the supporting joist structure to the area below. Yet, a water-proof roof feature can be a significant attribute of a deck, especially in instances where it is desirable to enclose the area below the deck to achieve a dry storage area which can serve as a garage, a room, or a storage shed. The problem, therefore, is to build a deck that also functions as a water-proof roof.
One method of achieving such a deck is to cover the deck joist structure with plywood and in turn cover the plywood with a modified asphalt roofing membrane material (such as NORD or GAFGLASS) which is either glued onto or torch-down-attached to the plywood. Spacer boards (e.g., 2".times.4" boards) are then generally placed on top of the subject water-proofed surface, and flooring planks are then nailed onto the spacer boards. While such an approach does not achieve the desired roofing characteristic, the reliability and longevity of the water-proofing material used in such a configuration is questionable. Consequently, the spacer/plank flooring is sometimes built in sections that can be more easily removed to enable servicing, repair, or replacement of the water-proofing material. While such a design achieves the desired roofing feature, it has several drawbacks. The plywood, water-proofing material, and sectionalization of the flooring add significant costs. Also, the joist-plywood surface must be pitched to facilitate water run-off. Finally, any servicing, repair, or replacement of the water-proofing material requires removal of the spacer/plank flooring--a potentially expensive proposition, especially if the water-proofing material requires relatively frequent servicing, repair, or replacement.
Another, more straightforward, approach for achieving the desired water-proof roof characteristic is to simply build a conventional sloped roof (i.e., joists, plywood or particle board, tarpaper) topped with shingles, or sheet tin or aluminum, or even the membrane material mentioned above, and then construct a conventional deck over top separate from the roof. However, such an approach requires even more materials, is more expensive, "steals" significant vertical clearance space (because two joist structures are required) and incurs servicing/repair problems similar to the previously described approach because roof access is limited by the presence of the "overhead" deck. While such an approach doesn't really achieve an integral "roof-deck" structure, it does provide the immediate functionality desired and is mentioned herein only for the sake of attempting to provide a more thorough assessment of prior art.
Finally, some decks, or probably more appropriately porches, are simply constructed of concrete wherein a concrete slab is supported by a joist structure. Such an endeavor requires molds and is quite expensive. While it is feasible to achieve a water-proof roofing feature with such a structure, expense alone is probably a prohibitive drawback in most cases.
In light of the above, clearly what is needed is a means for constructing or enabling the construction of a deck that 1) incorporates the desired water-proof roof feature, 2) does not rely on a pitched joist structure to achieve water run-off, 3) either minimizes the maintenance access problem or provides a highly reliable roof function that does not require significant maintenance, and 4) is either cheaper than (or at least economically competitive with) alternative means for constructing a deck with a water-proof feature.
The Deck Trough, the invention being applied for herewith, provides an economical means to integrate a highly reliable water-proof roof feature into a joist structure such as that integral to a typical wooden deck. A wooden deck comprising such a joist structure facilitates the construction of a room, garage, shed or other such dry-area structure below said deck, wherein said joist structure serves as the integral roof for the below dry-area structure. Additionally, such a deck retains virtually all of the other features typical of a conventionally built deck.
The invention, therefore, indirectly enables the construction of a dry-area structure such as a garage, room, or shed, that utilizes a wooden deck as its roof. Further, such a deck: provides a highly-reliable water-proof roof function, does not rely on a pitched joist structure to achieve water run-off, and is economically competitive with, if not necessarily cheaper than, alternative means for constructing a deck having said water-proof roof feature.